Oscar Pistorius denied parole and will remain in jail for murder of Reeva Steenkamp

Oscar Pistorius, the South African Paralympic champion who shot and killed his girlfriend a decade ago, has been denied parole after seeking early release from prison.

"We were... advised at this point in time that it has been denied and it will be considered again in one year's time," said Tania Koen, a lawyer for the family of victim Reeva Steenkamp on Friday.

The department of correctional services said Pistorius had not completed the minimum detention period required for parole.

Julian Knight, Pistorius’s lawyer, said he would be seeking a review of the decision.

The uncertainty over Pistorius’s eligibility for parole reportedly stems from confusion over how long he has been in prison due to his two sentences.

He served a year of his first sentence of six years, but when that was appealed he was released and spent six months under house arrest before his second trial, when he was then sentenced to 15 years.

The killing in 2013 sparked a highly-publicised murder trial.

Reeva’s mother, June Steenkamp, 76, was in attendance at Friday’s parole hearing.

'I don't believe his story'

Arriving at Atteridgeville prison near the capital Pretoria on Friday morning, Ms Steenkamp said she was feeling nervous.

"It's going to be very hard to be in the same room as him," she told reporters from her car. "I don't believe his story."

She later read a "victim impact" statement explaining the effects that the death of her 29-year-old daughter had on her parents.

Reeva's father, Barry, 79, was too unwell to travel for the Parole Board hearing.

Ms Koen said Reeva's parents continued to maintain that Oscar Pistorius, 36, "never told the truth" about her death.

Gun enthusiast Pistorius told his trial he had believed Steenkamp was an intruder when he shot her several times through the bathroom door with ammunition designed to inflict maximum damage to the human body.

He was jailed in 2016, initially for a six-year term, but had that sentence increased to 13 years after an appeal by prosecutors who argued the initial sentence was too lenient.

Pistorius, who had both legs amputated as a baby, reached the peak of his fame in 2012 when he became the first double amputee to compete against able-bodied athletes at the Olympics, reaching the 400m semi-finals in London.

At a trial that captured worldwide attention nine years ago, the athlete shuffled through the court without his prosthetics to show how vulnerable he was faced with the threat of an intruder.

He broke down crying as he told the court that he had been trying to protect Steenkamp when he fired the shots. The prosecutor at the time accused him of using emotional breakdowns to avoid questioning.

His uncle, Arnold Pistorius, said this was the third time he had expected his nephew’s release. “We were warned a day in advance to be prepared for him, and so my wife didn’t go away,” he said.

“We need to ask them how they did their calculation, as it seems they are satisfied about all else, his behaviour etc and this is the only outstanding matter, so how was it calculated?”

He said friends saw Oscar last weekend: “I heard he seemed to be in good spirits.”